Office Assistant Wanted

Seeking a reliable, accurate, personable, detail-oriented, dedicated person with good communication skills and the ability to be a team player. Pro-active and able to prioritize and accomplish duties in a timely manner.

]]>CHICOPEE, MA, January 2019—Duval Precision Grinding is pleased to welcome Brian Kirby, who will be taking on the responsibilities of Quality Manager. In this role, Mr. Kirby will be responsible for managing all aspects of quality assurance. He will maintain adherence to industry certification standards (NADCAP, FAA, AS/ISO), review technical documentation, maintain adherence to process documentation, and overseeing the quality department.

“We’re very happy and excited to have Mr. Kirby join our team. This will be a definitive step forward in growing the company and building upon the current bench strength within the company,” said Duval Precision Grinding General Manager, Raymond Provencher. “We’re very confident that his experience and attention to detail will strengthen our quality department as a whole and help us maintain the level of quality our customers rely on us to provide.”

Duval is an industry-leading precision grinding service provider and FAA repair station. Its team of expert machinists and grinders have decades of experience creating innovative solutions for grinding and finishing complex components. Brian Kirby brings several years of experience in machining, CNC programming, process management, and quality assurance, to the position.

“I look forward to further expanding my knowledge of the aerospace industry specifically and the standards required to fulfill orders while striving for total customer satisfaction,” said Mr. Kirby. “Ensuring that the products we provide grinding services for in industries like nuclear power, aerospace, and the military meet the strict certification standards required is a responsibility that I embrace entirely.”

Duval’s mission to consistently exceed the expectations of their clients continues to set them apart. They are able to reliably meet tight deadlines and maintain tight tolerance requirements for customers in industries with demanding standards for quality. Brian Kirby’s experience and attention to detail will serve to strengthen their overall quality inspection department and ensure they remain the foremost precision grinding service provider for the aerospace industry and more.

]]>Duval Precision Grinding was recently approached by a military contractor seeking grinding and finishing services for a precision inspection gauge. The inspection gauge was designed to simulate receiving the mounting apparatus for artillery. This inspection process ensured that artillery would be seated properly during installation. Maintaining accuracy would be a vital part of achieving the customer’s desired results for the finished product, so they came to Duval for the highest quality precision grinding services.

Custom Grinding Operations Ensure the Results You Need

The unique, complex geometry of the inspection gauge and the tight tolerances required would make this piece a particularly challenging job. When grinding an object to a certain roundness and locating from an adjacent face, the smallest imperfections in that face can affect the outcome of the grinding process.

To help guarantee consistent adherence to detail, one of our most experienced grinding operators personally worked on the project from start to finish. Additionally, the customer requested the part be inspected after each grinding operation.

A normal jig grinding operation is performed on an inside diameter (ID) or outside diameter (OD) with precise sizing. This particular part required double-sided slot grinding. Since this is an atypical grinding request, achieving the results the customer needed would require a customized grinding process and a little creative thinking.

Experienced Grinders Guarantee Accuracy and Precision

The expert grinders at Duval Precision Grinding were able to rise to the challenge presented by the customer and provide them with a finished, quality part. At Duval, precision is our only product and we are always willing to apply our expertise in innovative ways to return a quality part, every time. For more information about precision grinding services for inspection guages and more, contact us today.

]]>Duval Precision Grinding has over twenty years of experience performing precision grinding operations on aviation equipment. Our grinders regularly handle detailed instructions for complex aircraft parts to meet tight tolerance requirements and ensure all aerospace components that pass through the shop are up to FAA standards. Recently, a new customer seeking grinding services to finish their helicopter transmission casing approached our team for help.

Experienced Grinders Able to Work with Extra Light Materials

The transmission casing being produced by the client would eventually be part of a commercial helicopter. It was made of aluminum, which is a very light ferrous metal. Chrome-coated steel liners were included to improve wear resistance without infringing on weight limitations for the aircraft.

Our team was able to use standard grinding wheels to complete this particular job. However, due to the high thermal coefficient of expansion of aluminum, special attention needed to be paid to the temperature control during grinding operations. If the part was allowed to become too hot or too cold during grinding, it could create inaccuracies in the final tolerance measurements for the part.

The NIST specifies 68℉ as the ideal temperature to use as a baseline for obtaining accurate measurements of materials that are subject to the effects of thermal expansion. While some parts and materials have enough mass that their expansion and contraction in relation to temperature is virtually negligible, other materials, like aluminum, are so susceptible to changes in temperature that body heat can be enough to distort their measurements. To mitigate the effects of thermal expansion, all of our grinding operations are performed in a climate controlled environment kept at 68℉. Grinding produces friction which can also heat the part and cause it to expand. Coolants are used judiciously to keep the part at a steady temperature overall and achieve the most accurate tolerance measurements possible.

Initially, the requested grinding process required the use of a jig grinder. However, due to the shape of the transmission casing, it was difficult to complete the job efficiently this way. Our experienced grinders worked with the customer to see if there was a more efficient way to achieve the results they were looking for.

After consulting with the customer’s team, a new process was developed that enabled Duval grinders to perform the necessary grinding operations on an ID grinder, which drastically reduced the run time for the job. Not only did the customer receive a part that was completed to their exact specifications, but they were also able to move their production schedule ahead, thanks to the increased efficiency.

Do you have questions about precision grinding for transmission casings for aerospace and custom equipment? Contact the experts at Duval Precision Grinding, today.

]]>The experts at Duval have decades of experience working in rigorously regulated industries, such as FAA overhaul, aerospace, and even nuclear power. Several of our customers that specialize in manufacturing components for nuclear reactors. Over the years, they have trusted Duval Precision Grinding to provide them with the high-quality grinding and finishing results that ensure their equipment passes inspection and performs reliably.

Custom Tooling and Fixturing

Recently, our team completed work on a particularly complex and important piece of equipment. The control rod latch assembly is used to position the rod cluster within the reactor core. Inserting the rods will slow the reaction that generates power while withdrawing them will cause the reaction to increase exponentially. The reactor can be “scrammed”, or shut down quickly, in an emergency by disengaging the latch assembly and allowing the rods in fall into the core via the force of gravity.

Duval’s team of grinders worked to complete a series of individual parts that make up the control rod latch assembly. The parts included a cartridge assembly, latch housing assembly, movable latch magnet, movable latch support and more. The parts were made of steel with either chrome plating or plasma coating, depending on their function within the finished assembly. In order to fulfill the specifications for each component and achieve the tight tolerances that were required, custom tooling and fixtures needed to be developed. To accurately position hole features, some of the parts required rotary indexing on a jig grinder.

When Precision Matters Most, Trust the Experts

Duval’s capability to provide reliable, high-quality precision grinding services for complex components made them the most qualified choice to complete these jobs for the OEMs. Our team was able to fully process each piece for the rod latch assembly to the customers’ exact specifications. Each component was subjected to our stringent in-house quality inspection processes, as well as special quality audits performed by the customers. The components passed with positive remarks and the customers were overall satisfied with the work once complete.

Experienced Machinist /Grinder Wanted

Duties and Responsibilities:

Sets up and operates one or more grinding machines to grind aerospace parts to blueprint specifications.

Follows blueprints, job orders and written or verbal instructions for product specifications such as finishes, dimensions, tolerances, number of parts to be holding fixtures and grinding wheels to be used.

]]>Recently, Duval Precision Grinding worked on a project for a large-scale aerospace manufacturer that produces components for the military. The customer needed pre-machining grinding and final-dimension grinding for a set of chrome-plated pitch control shafts with extremely demanding tolerance specifications. To complete the job the entire process had to be evaluated from tooling & fixturing, to grinding, and quality inspection, making it one of the most challenging jobs the team has taken on.

Matching Tight Tolerances for Challenging Part Specifications

To ensure the parts would be completed with the level of exactitude the customer required, our team worked collaboratively with the OEM and customer engineers, who traveled onsite to view our operations firsthand. The tight tolerances for this part needed to be met without any variation, which necessitated the production of custom fixtures that would be used exclusively to complete this particular job.

Our entire team, from operators to inspectors worked with the customer’s engineering team to develop a specialized timing fixture that would be able to rotate and index the parts. Timing the features around a circular axis requires an experienced grinder, which made Duval an ideal choice to provide precision grinding for this job. The final inspection process had to correlate with the customer’s to ensure final specifications were met. Duval also collaborated with the customer to offer consultation on revisions to the manufacturing process to provide a part that would facilitate more efficient grinding operations and yield improved dimensional results in the future.

Duval Does What It Takes to Get the Job Done

The pitch control shafts were made of 300M steel, which is fairly typical for landing gear structures. Duval performed the initial pre-machining operations to prepare the shafts for the next stages of production, which included shot-peening and chrome plating. The parts were then returned to Duval for final-dimension grinding.

The pre-machining operations that our precision grinding experts provided for the client included OD grinding with a slot grind on the outside diameter, surface grinding, ID surface grinding, side wheel grinding, and radial flat grinding in the slot. The interior of the shafts had four flat surfaces that had to be indexed with precision surface grinding. Our surface grinding capabilities for indexed features are of supreme quality, thanks to our grinders’ impressive level of experience. It was a difficult process, but our team is well-equipped for these intensive projects and was able to execute this job seamlessly.

At Duval, we understand that, in an industry like aerospace and aviation, there is no room for error. This is why we are dedicated to meeting our customers’ specifications, regardless of how complex they may be for other facilities. For more information about precision grinding services for aerospace components, contact us today.

]]>Duval Precision Grinding Passes Annual AS9100, NADCAP, and Customer Auditshttps://www.duvalgrinding.com/duval-passes-nadcap-and-as9100-recertification-audits/
Thu, 31 May 2018 15:16:39 +0000https://www.duvalgrinding.com/?p=807Duval has passed their NADCAP audit with good merit and received an extended audit period from annually to every 18 months. They have also passed their annual AS9100 recertification and are now certified to the new ISO 9001-2015 (rev D) standards.

]]>CHICOPEE, MA, May 2018—Duval Precision Grinding has passed its yearly recertification audits with good merit. The audits verified their compliance to the new AS9100 (Rev D) standard and renewed the company’s NADCAP accreditation.

“Considering the scope of the changes made to both the AS9100 and NADCAP requirements, , we were very pleased to see positive results with no more than a handful of minor corrections,” said Duval Precision Grinding president, Ron Parlengas. “The entire Duval team went above and beyond to demonstrate their knowledge of the new requirements.”

“Achieving NADCAP accreditation is not easy: it is one of the ways in which the aerospace industry identifies those who excel at special processes. Companies such as Duval Precision Grinding work hard to obtain this status and they should be justifiably proud of it, “ said Joe Pinto, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at the Performance Review Institute.

The auditor interviewed employees and reviewed documentation at all levels. Policies, procedures, and systems operations were reviewed with process owners to validate compliance.

In March 2018, Duval renewed its AS9100 / ISO 9001:2015 certification to the Revision D level which requires the company to assess risks and opportunities throughout all its processes with a focus on continuous improvement.

In October 2017, Duval renewed its NADCAP accreditation by demonstrating ongoing commitment to quality by satisfying customer requirements. The company passed with good merit and an extension of their audit period from every twelve months to every eighteen months.

About Nadcap Created in 1990 by SAE Inc., Nadcap is administered by the not-for-profit Performance Review Institute. PRI is a global provider of customer-focused solutions designed to improve process and product quality by adding value, reducing total cost and promoting collaboration among stakeholders in industries where safety and quality are shared goals. PRI works closely with industry to understand their emerging needs and offers customized solutions in response. Learn more at www.p-r-i.org or contact PRI at PRI@p-r-i.org

]]>At Duval, we take our commitment to continuous improvement and precision seriously. As a part of that philosophy, we actively seek out opportunities to strengthen our internal operations and increase overall process efficiency. This includes initiatives to invest in our current employees and provide them with opportunities to contribute to other areas of the shop.

Investing in our current employees provides our team with unique insight that can help streamline operations on the shop floor. It also provides employees with opportunities for upward mobility. For example, an employee who began working in the shipping and maintenance department was recently trained on some new skills, such as reviewing job cards, creating job packages from customer purchase orders, and assembling job instructions for operators on the shop floor.

While working in shipping, the employee become very familiar with the specifications and requirements of Duval’s repeat customers; he also demonstrated an aptitude for remembering the associated part numbers. His retention of this information and his detail-oriented nature made him an asset to communication with audit inspectors.

Duval’s management team recognized these efforts and, in an effort to strengthen the company’s contract review process, offered the employee a newly created position. As the engineering coordinator, this employee is now responsible for making sure each job meets customer requirements. This new role gives our team additional capacity for internal review when preparing a job for operators and quality inspectors. The engineering coordinator works with the team to strengthen internal operation sheets, which document how parts are processed. If jobs go out on the floor and process notes are added, the job cards go back to the engineering coordinator, who reviews them and updates the process documentation. This greatly improves our overall operational efficiency and minimizes opportunity for operator error.

Our employees are also given plenty of educational opportunities to expand their skill sets, keep them up to date on the latest technologies, and enable them to advance into new roles. Grinders, operators, and other team members are able to take classes on blueprint reading, metrology, relevant mathematics, and more.

Many of the classes our employees take are provided through MassMEP. Duval has been utilizing MassMEP for the last five years as a resource for classes in lean manufacturing and shop training. Recently, our entire engineering team attended classes for improving job-processing methods. This—as well as the support provided by our new engineering coordinator—combines the experience of people who work in the shop with those who best know how to run the machines. Our overall process efficiency has greatly improved.

The Duval Guarantee: Precision Is Our Only Product

In addition to providing employees with educational opportunities and cross training, we have also brought in additional quality inspectors. These inspectors have helped to strengthen our inspection standards by creating part-specific, standardized inspection processes for repeat jobs.

]]>Recently, a producer of medical implants and devices approached Duval Precision Grinding with a particularly difficult job. The producer required ID grinding services for a femoral head made of titanium. There were specific areas on the equipment that needed improvement; the company entrusted our experienced precision grinders to help them make the necessary changes.

Femoral Head Implant with Tight Tolerances and Steep Angles

A medical component at Duval for precision grinding services

The part at hand was made of titanium, which is a notoriously difficult material to work with. It is used frequently for parts intended to be implanted in a human body because of its low weight, tensile strength and its high resistance to corrosion and oxidation.

Additionally, this particular task required ID grinding at an abnormally steep angle with tight tolerance requirements of less than 0.0002”. It was vitally important that the implant be completed to the customer’s exact specifications, in order to function properly once implanted in the patient. This was one of the more difficult component geometries than what our grinders typically work with, but they were more than ready to once again rise to the challenge.

Experienced Grinding Experts Produce Reliable, High-Quality Results

Preparing the parts for grinding required some additional processes, which were critical for the success of the job. Our precision grinders worked with our process managers and quality inspectors to ensure that this highly challenging task was completed correctly. We tested the grinding process with various silicon carbide grinding wheels and dressing tools until the customer was satisfied with the yielded results. This was a prime example of the importance of preparation and process engineering. Thanks to careful calculation and precise machine set-up, Duval was able to make the necessary improvements and meet the customer’s tolerance specifications.

Do you have a complicated component with challenging geometries that needs precision grinding? Contact the professionals at Duval Precision Grinding, today.